


Winter: Better Learn To Share

by XenophonSpeaks



Series: Erejean Week [3]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Frottage, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-31
Updated: 2015-03-31
Packaged: 2018-03-20 15:24:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,754
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3655317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/XenophonSpeaks/pseuds/XenophonSpeaks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There's really only one good way to keep warm, after all.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Winter: Better Learn To Share

**Author's Note:**

> Day Three of Erejean Week: Winter
> 
> I had three goals when writing this: To write canonverse, to write from Eren's point of view, and to write smut. 
> 
> Guess what? I did just that. This prompt took me longer to write than any other. Smut is hard, guys. No pun intended (syke pun totally intended, don't kid yourselves).
> 
> Please enjoy.

They’d really done it now, Eren thought, stumbling through the snow as Levi angrily pulled him along, hand fisted around his upper arm. He could hear Jean stumbling along in much the same way on Levi’s other side.

The wind outside was harsh, tossing cold snow at them as they move purposely through the courtyard.

“I’ve had enough of your shit,” Levi said in a monotone voice that still managed to be terrifying to both boys—boys who weren’t really boys anymore, being that they were eighteen now, which probably made things that much worse. Eighteen was too old to be forgiven for coming to blows, Eren reasoned.

“You two are staying in the barn where I don’t have to hear your petty bickering for the rest of the night. I don’t give a damn if you beat the living hell out of each other, but you had better be ready for training tomorrow. I won’t be going easy on you,” Levi finished gravely.

Eren swallowed, watching distractedly as steam rose from the left side of his face where Jean had punched him. He didn’t doubt Levi, not at all. If anything, he anticipated Levi would probably make training a living hell for the both of them.

Pausing only long enough to roughly open the barn door, Levi unceremoniously tossed both of them inside. Eren just managed to catch himself, fumbling to a stop and watching Jean almost fall face first into a barrel.

Eren turned back toward the door, seeing that Levi had lit the lamp closest to the entrance. He reflexively caught the thick blanket Levi tossed at him.

“Better learn to share,” Levi said solemnly, walking back out into the cold. “I’ll see you at sunrise.”

The door slamed shut behind him, leaving a ringing silence in its wake. Eren heard Levi place a heavy beam across the outside of the door, securing it and ensuring they wouldn’t be going anywhere until morning.

Neither of them moved. Neither said a word. The silence strained between them, Eren doing his best to ignore it.

A shiver passed through him as his body adjusted to the new temperature of the barn, grateful to be out of the wind. It was cold in the barn, to be sure, but it wasn’t unbearable. It was also relatively clean seeing as they had just mucked out the stables the day before, the horses having not yet arrived back from a mission several of the corps members were on.

They were completely alone.

Behind him, Jean sighed heavily into the quiet. Eren turned to look at him in the dim light, noting the way Jean’s left cheek was starting to swell and finding that he actually felt kind of guilty knowing Jean’s injury wouldn’t heal as fast as his own.

That guilt only lasted as long as Jean kept his mouth shut, however.

“Thanks a lot, asshole. Now I have to freeze my ass off out here all night,” Jean huffed, kicking at a stray bit of hay on the floor irritably. Eren suddenly found himself feeling a lot less charitable.

“You started it, horseface,” he groused, crossing the barn to light a few more lamps begrudgingly. It wasn’t exactly a waste of oil if they were going to be stuck out here all night.

“I didn’t start shit,” Jean said, heat returning to his voice. “You were the one who got all fucking offended just because I told you to go sit down.”

Instantly, Eren’s ire flamed back to life. He rounded on Jean angrily.

“I didn’t need to sit down, you asshole! Quit treating me like I don’t have a right to be doing the same shit as everyone else!” He threw the blanket on the floor, his hands balled up into fists.

He officially felt zero guilt about the bruise on Jean’s cheek. In fact, he wouldn’t have been opposed to giving Jean a matching set.

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Jean asked incredulously, his amber eyes glittering unreadably in the light.

“You always do that. Any time we’re cleaning, or cooking dinner, or chopping wood, or whatever the fuck it is we’re supposed to be doing, you try and get me to go away.”

He felt his eyes prick hotly, fighting it off as best as he could. It hurt, to not be wanted. For reasons Eren didn’t really like to think about, it hurt the most hearing it come from Jean. After all those years fighting alongside one another, rescuing each other, facing their greatest victories and their most crushing defeats as part of the same team, Eren thought they were at least close enough for Jean to not actively want him out of his presence.

“What? I’m not—That isn’t—,” Jean started, fisting his own hair and groaning in frustration. “That’s not what I’m trying to do, idiot.”

“Bullshit!” Eren said, stepping closer and giving Jean a shove in an attempt to redirect his own hurt back into anger. “If you don’t want me around then just say so!”

“I _do_ want you around,” Jean snarled, fisting his hands in the front Eren’s shirt and giving him a shake. “I’m just— for fucks sake, I was trying to _help_ , ok?” His voice cracked at the end, catching Eren off guard. “You’re always so fucking stressed about every little thing, with the war and with titans and worrying about everyone else and I just—I was just trying to give you a break.”

They stared at each other for a long moment before Jean seemed to become aware of how close they were, hands dropping from Eren’s collar as if burned. He turned away, dropping down heavily on a crate against one of the stall doors.

Eren’s wasn’t sure how to respond to that. He’d only really been so upset to begin with because he’d felt like Jean didn’t want to be around him, and realizing that he had punched the guy who was apparently trying to do him a favor (to be fair, Jean had also punched him in return) made Eren suddenly feel like the bad guy. He didn’t like being the bad guy.

“Oh,” he said lamely after a moment, picking up the blanket again for lack of anything better to do. He walked over to an adjacent wall, sitting down uncertainly on a crate of his own, the blanket lying haphazardly across his lap.

The silence was thick with tension, unsaid words and feelings almost palpable. Jean had been worried about him. Eren had been hurt to think Jean hadn’t wanted him around, and to find out Jean was actually concerned for him instead threw him off balance. He was too stubborn to apologize outright, but that didn’t change the fact that he did feel bad about misunderstanding things so terribly.

He wasn’t sure how much time had passed, so caught up in his own thoughts that for a long moment he wondered if Jean had fallen asleep. It was certainly late enough. However, when he glanced up and chanced a look in Jean’s direction it was to find him huddled in on himself, arms crossed over his chest as he leaned forward against his legs, visibly shaking.

Eren looked down at the blanket lying mostly unused in his lap, hand absently trailing over the woolen fibers. He was quite comfortable, but then again his abilities tended to make him a lot warmer than most people, he supposed.

“Do you, um, want this?” he asked, finally breaking the silence and holding up the blanket. Jean shot him a glare and shook his head stubbornly. Eren snorted, not really surprised.

Rolling his eyes, he chucked the blanket across the room in Jean’s general direction. “I don’t need it. I’m a weird titan freak. Always warm.”

“You’re not a freak,” Jean grumbled, picking up the blanket anyway and tossing it over his shoulders. Eren tried not to let that comment mean too much to him.

Several minutes passed in silence but for the howling of the wind outside. Eren crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back to rest comfortably against the wall. He watched the light from the lamps flicker, casting the barn in long shadows. Glancing at Jean only revealed that he was still shaking like a leaf, face pale in the light.

The blanket should have warmed him up by now, Eren thought with a frown. If they weren’t careful, Jean was going to end up sick, and Eren was feeling guilty enough as it was; he didn’t need that on his conscience as well.

 _Better learn to share_ , Levi had said.

Eren sighed, standing to walk with the resignation of a man on his way to the gallows. He could only hope Jean wouldn’t kill him for this.

Jean looked up, giving Eren a quizzical glance as he approached. He quickly flopped down next to Jean on the crate, wrapping him in a fierce hug that was meant to restrain Jean as much as it was meant to help keep him warm.

“What the hell are you doing?” he hissed, fighting and failing to push Eren off. Eren tightened his grip, fitting Jean’s side firmly against his chest.

“Shut up. You’re cold. Armin and Mikasa always tell me I’m like a fireplace or something,” Eren mumbled into Jean’s shoulder. “I don’t want you to get sick. Captain Levi would kill me.”

“I’m not going to get sick,” Jean insisted, but Eren noticed that he slowly stopped fussing. He eventually curled back in on himself, leaning against Eren ever so slightly.

Eren tried not to feel pleased, instead rubbing at Jean’s broad back and arms in an effort to warm him up. He shouldn’t take too much advantage of having the opportunity to touch Jean in a way that didn’t end in swinging fists and bloodshed, but it was hard to stop his hands from tracing the gentle swell of muscles beneath his palms.

After a minute or two Jean’s shivering began to lessen and Eren breathed a deep sigh of relief. He inadvertently inhaled a scent only describable as wholly Jean, warm and comforting and unlike anything else Eren had ever smelled. It was a smell Eren was familiar with, yet one he was acquainted with only rarely.

Jean fidgeted beneath him for a few minutes, looking deep in thought. “It would probably be warmer if you were, uh, also in the blanket,” Jean finally said awkwardly, refusing to look Eren in the eye.

Eren felt his heart pick up speed at the same time he refused to acknowledge it. “Yeah, probably so,” he agreed, feeling like he must be dreaming. He had imagined scenarios like this so many times it felt almost surreal to find himself actually presented with an opportunity to be this physically close.

He took the blanket from Jean, wrapping it around himself before enveloping him in a hug once more. It was significantly warmer, though Eren thought the way his body was flushing might have something to do with the sudden rise in temperature.

He listened to Jean’s unsteady breathing, feeling Jean’s heart beat a wild rhythm beneath his forearm where it rested along his chest. He could see a flush riding high on Jean’s face, making Eren’s mind race with possibilities he normally only entertained in dreams where they couldn’t be controlled.

He was pretty sure he had an idea of what it all meant, but testing that theory out was a fairly terrifying prospect. This was the closest they’d ever been, and a part of Eren was very reluctant to risk what he’d so recently gained. The other part of him felt eager to continue this forward momentum, to see how far Jean would let him go before he pushed him away.

“Shit, you really are warm,” Jean said quietly, reaching up to tentatively touch at the skin of Eren’s hand where it rested on his shoulder.

It was a good way to keep warm anyway, he reasoned with himself, silently adding that opportunities like these didn’t exactly come often between the two of them.

He shifted one hand under the blanket, slowly bringing it along Jean’s shoulder to rest against the side of his neck. He could hear Jean’s breath hitch, feeling him swallow beneath his palm. He carded his fingers softly into the fine dark hairs at the base of Jean’s neck, heart hammering as he slowly pulled him forward to press his lips gently against the bruise on Jean’s cheek.

“Sorry,” he whispered before letting his head fall back against Jean’s shoulder.

Jean felt frozen beneath him. Eren waited for him to say something, to ask him to move, maybe even shove him clean off the crate. His heart was hammering so loudly in his ears that he could hear nothing else, willing himself to calm down and accept whatever happened next.

He flinched when he felt Jean’s hands come up quickly to grab his face, dislodging Eren’s hold (as well as the blanket around them both). Adrenaline spiked through him, and he tensed as Jean tightened his grip.

“Why do you look like you’re expecting me to hit you?” Jean asked wryly after a moment, searching Eren’s expression. Eren opened his mouth to retort, shock jolting through him as Jean pressed their lips firmly together.

His first internal response was irritation, because from the looks of things he could have done this a long time ago and gotten a similar response. The idea that he had held himself back for so long for absolutely no reason was maddening.

His second response was to completely forget absolutely everything, irritation included, as Jean knotted his fingers in Eren’s hair, tugging lightly in an effort to angle Eren’s head and deepen the kiss. Eren heard himself let out a breathy moan without his consent, his eyes flying open –when had they closed?—to look at Jean in mild mortification.

Their lips parted, though Jean didn’t appear to have any intention of moving away any time soon. Eren felt like they were looking at each other as if really seeing each other for the first time, their breathing heavy and loud between them.

“How long?” Jean asked seriously. Eren somehow knew exactly what he meant.

“Since forever?” he squeaked uncertainly, afraid of saying the wrong thing.

“So you’re not just, like, looking for the nearest warm body or something?”

“What the fuck? No! I’ve liked you since I was like thirteen, you dick,” Eren said, eyebrows furrowing, his embarrassment subsiding in the face of his anger.

“Oh. Good then,” Jean said, as if that solved everything.

Eren was about to ask him what the hell that was supposed to mean but quickly forgot his question as Jean’s mouth descended on his own like a man starved for air. No longer overcome with shock or worry, Eren fisted his own hands in the back of Jean’s shirt, hauling it up to run his fingers lightly along the now very warm skin just above Jean’s hips.

Jean gasped against Eren’s lips, clearly surprised at the contact, and Eren took the opportunity to experimentally lick at Jean’s mouth. He felt Jean shudder against him, his fist tightening in Eren’s hair in a way that made the hairs along Eren’s neck and arms rise as if electrified.

“I wouldn’t be opposed to helping keep you warm tonight,” Eren said, voice ragged, “But I would really appreciate not doing that on a fucking box.”

Jean stared at him, open-mouthed and wide-eyed. The shock must have fried his brain, Eren thought. He tried to suppress a laugh as Jean appeared to gather his wits, leaping up and immediately heading for one of the empty barn stalls, dragging Eren along by the arm much the same way Levi had drug them both around earlier in the evening. Eren bent down to grab the blanket as he stumbled along after him, not bothering to hide his smug look.

Before Jean could continue to manhandle him around, Eren twisted easily out of his grip, shoving Jean down into the pile of fresh hay lying on the ground. Jean huffed indignantly as he tumbled down and looked like he meant to say something rude, but before he could get a word off Eren quickly knelt down and began to crawl over him.

Jean’s mouth closed with an audible snap.

Eren trailed one hand up to slowly whisper across the fabric of Jean’s shirt, stopping to hover above the button near the hollow of his throat. His eyes looked to Jean’s questioningly, Jean staring back unreadably.

“I just want to be clear about this because I don’t want to be stopped once I start,” Eren blurted out after a moment. “Are you ok with this? Because I am like, fully intent on—“

“Yes! Very ok with it, very fine, everything is great and I’m probably actually dreaming,” Jean rambled, face reddening. He looked about as overwhelmed as Eren felt.

“So you’re not going to be upset if I--?”

“Maria, Sina and Rose, Eren, I’ve wanted this for _years_ , just stop talking and—“

That was all the confirmation Eren needed before he deftly unbuttoned Jean’s shirt to expose his neck and collarbones, leaning down to lave at the exposed skin hungrily. Jean made a hoarse noise, grasping at Eren’s hips with his hands and pulling him down more fully on top of him. He continued unbuttoning Jean’s shirt as he explored every inch of skin he could reach with his mouth, sucking lightly at the base of his jaw.

“Fuck,” Jean swore, arching up into Eren thigh. He could feel the warmth of Jean’s arousal, and he ground down teasingly, pleased with the way Jean spasmed against him.

Jean’s hands found their way under his shirt, skating warmly across his lower back. Eren sat up briefly to divest himself of his own shirt, tossing it carelessly behind him. He looked back at Jean to find him wide-eyed, hair mussed and shirt now fully open as he leaned up on his elbows, looking over Eren unapologetically. Eren had never really given too much thought to whether or not he was particularly attractive in the eyes of others, but the way Jean looked at him left no doubt in Eren’s mind that Jean found him desirable.

“How are you even real,” Jean murmured, placing one hand reverently on Eren’s chest and gently trailing it lower to trace the outline of his abs.

Something in the region of Eren’s heart constricted. Of all the things Eren had been made to feel in his life, beautiful was not among them.

They moved at the same moment, lips meeting between them in a messy, open mouthed kiss. Jean moved one hand to clamp around the back of Eren’s neck, his other arm wrapping around Eren’s back to pull him down flush against him, grinding his arousal against Eren’s own.

Eren gasped against his mouth as Jean rolled them over effortlessly, pinning Eren down in the hay. Their lips parted, Jean pulling back and giving Eren that half smile that he found both unfairly attractive and equally annoying.

“I’ve been waiting way too long to let you take the lead,” Jean said as he pushed his own shirt the rest of the way off. A few pieces of straw clung to his hair, but Eren barely noticed, captivated by the sight of Jean’s bare torso before him. It wasn’t anything new; they’d seen each other naked any number of times, but seeing something in passing and seeing something with the realization that it was alright for him to reach out and touch was doing wonders to kill Eren’s ability to think rationally.

He reached up, yearning to map out what was before him with his fingers, but was incredibly frustrated when Jean caught his hand and pinned it above him.

“You’re not the only one who’s been waiting, you asshole,” Eren hissed, fighting to free his hand and succeeding only in having his other pinned as well. He groaned, tossing his head back in frustration. “This isn’t fair. I want to—“

His complaint died in his throat, morphing into a moan instead as Jean ground down against him. “Next time,” he assured Eren, looking smug.

The idea that there would be a next time, that this wouldn’t be a one-time deal, made Eren a lot happier than he cared to admit. He settled for begrudgingly nodding his agreement.

Jean rewarded him by leaning over to lick a trail along Eren’s collar bone and up along the crook of his neck. Eren arched his back, surprised at how good it actually felt, grinding up against Jean in the process. Jean groaned low against his ear, pressing back firmly, and Eren felt desire spike through him like a lance.

“Like that?” Jean asked hotly, licking the shell of his ear and grinding down against him again.

“ _Fuck_ ,” Eren swore, blindly grinding back on instinct. His pulse thrummed so loudly in his ears he could barely focus, unconsciously turning his head to expose more of his neck.

He didn’t realize one of his hands was free until he felt himself grasping at Jean’s back, Jean’s hand suddenly gripping his hip bruisingly as he slotted them together in a way that left Eren’s head reeling. He cried out when Jean began to build a rhythm, throwing his head back against the straw and arching back into Jean as much as he could with his limited mobility. Jean released his other hand to grip Eren’s jaw, turning his head to crush their lips together.

He probably should have been embarrassed by the noises he was making, his voice having reached a point where it consisted mainly of high pitched whines and moans, but he was too far gone to care or really even notice.

With both hands now free, Eren let his hands rove over the smooth muscles of Jean’s back, hands drifting lower until he reached the waistline of Jean’s pants, slipping his fingers beneath the fabric and squeezing appreciatively. Jean broke the kiss to throw his head back, Eren leaning forward to bite at his exposed neck, feeling Jean’s rhythm break into a stutter.

“Fuck, Eren, _fuck,_ ” Jean babbled, thrusting against Eren mindlessly. Eren felt his own completion nearing, using his hold to pull Jean against him as he watched Jean fall apart.

There was a part of Eren that wanted to always be able to remember this moment, and despite the lust-ridden haze of his thoughts he tried to memorize the flush on Jean’s pale skin, the way the dim light caught in his amber eyes, the feel of him strong and yet vulnerable in his arms; how captivating he looked as he came, head thrown back, brows furrowed and mouth open in a sob of satisfaction.

Somehow that look was what did Eren in. He let out a cry, shuddering against Jean as he came, Jean’s mouth finding his own and swallowing up every noise and cry that escaped him until he was completely spent.

Jean slumped heavily against him, breathing ragged and hot against Eren’s shoulder. Knowing they were both likely to get cold again quickly if they weren’t careful, Eren gently nudged Jean off of him, leaning sideways to grab the blanket off the floor and throwing it over them before dropping back against the hay.

He snorted as Jean immediately latched onto him, his head on Eren’s shoulder and one arm gripping him around the middle, their legs tangling together under the blanket. Eren expected they’d probably regret not cleaning themselves up in the morning, but he couldn’t really be bothered when he was currently so comfortable.

They were quiet for a long time. Eren was exhausted and figured Jean had probably fallen asleep, but after a while he felt Jean shift around awkwardly and realized he probably meant to say something. Eren should probably say something, too, but he his general plan had only outlined what to do to possibly earn Jean’s affection—and he hadn’t expected that to even go well. He had absolutely no idea how to proceed from here.

“Um,” he started eloquently, feeling Jean tense around him. “So that was good, right? For you, I mean. Like. You might want to do it again sometime?” he finished uncertainly.

Jean laughed, relaxing against him. Eren rolled his eyes at the roof of the barn. “Shut up. I’m not good at this shit.”

“I can tell,” Jean said, but to Eren it sounded fond. “And yes. I would like to do it again sometime.”

Eren wrapped an arm around Jean, snuggling more comfortably against him.

“… like maybe in a few minutes kind of sometime?”

Eren could feel rather than see Jean blush against him. “I wouldn’t say no.”

“Good. Because we’re out here all night you know. Have to keep warm and whatever.”

Jean snorted and Eren smiled at nothing in particular, feeling happier than he could remember being in a very long time.

When Jean’s hand drifted lower across his stomach to rest at the hem of his pants, fingers drifting below teasingly, Eren grinned. He had a feeling they weren’t going to be doing much sleeping at all.

-

The next morning, Levi trudged through the cold morning snow toward the barn. He wasn’t entirely sure what he would find, but he was prepared to have to deal with a fair amount of sulking and possibly even injuries. Those two were a massive pain in his ass, always bickering. There was a part of him that was proud that this was the first fist fight they’d gotten into in several years now, but at the same time that almost made the night before that much worse. He’d thought they’d grown up. He was apparently wrong.

“Give them some time alone,” Erwin had suggested last time he’d complained to him about their constant arguing. “I suspect things will work themselves out.”

“Tch,” Levi said to himself, removing the beam from the outside of the door just as the sun peaked over the horizon. He opened the barn, casting around for signs of the boys and finding none.

Well, not true. He could see something on the floor. He walked toward it, picking it up. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a pair of pants.

Levi sighed like a man heavily burdened by duty, having a good idea of what he’d find if he checked the closest stall. He turned around, pausing in the doorway.

Both boys were tangled together, naked from the waist up --likely from the waist down, too, but Levi couldn’t be sure with the blanket over them like that—and covered in a nice smattering of love bites. Clothing was strewn all over the place, and Levi curled his lip to think of the mess they’d likely made in here. It smelled like sex, and that was fairly impressive considering it was hard to top the smell of old barn and horse that permeated the room on any given day.

They looked peaceful, both sleeping open-mouthed. Eren was drooling a nice little puddle on Jean’s chest, Levi noted with some disgust, yet despite everything he found himself overall pleased.

Giving himself a mental shake, he walked toward them purposefully, boots clipping loudly on the barn floor. He gave them a good kick in the lump he assumed was a mass of legs, both of them startling awake and looking from each other to him in dawning mortification.

“About damn time,” he said, crossing his arms before him. “Get your fucking pants on and then go find some clean clothes. I don’t want to think about what happened in these.” He threw the pair of pants he’d been holding at them, stalking back out of the stall in an effort to give them some level of privacy.

“I expect you ready for training within half an hour. And you _will_ be cleaning this barn out again later. It’s not fair to the horses,” he said, walking back out into the snow.

He had a feeling Erwin knew this would happen. Too damn smart, that old man. Levi would have to brew him a nice cup of tea or something as a thank you.

Though, to be fair, Levi suspected what he just walked in on would likely become an all-too-common occurrence. He shuddered at the thought. Maybe Erwin didn’t really deserve that thank you after all.

**Author's Note:**

> Want to be tumblr buddies? Come and say hello. xenophonspeaks.tumbr.com


End file.
